Happy Birthday Matt!

Our baby turned one today! I'm so sad, but happy too. I can't believe all my children have numbers now, not just months for their ages. That makes me a little sad. I'll probably use months for his age anyway for as long as I can. I'll be saying, "oh, he's 84 months old....".

The party was so fun! We had both sets of grandparents, plus Grandma Bertha, Matthew's great-grandma! Aunt Jill and Uncle Anthony were there with Lita, Hiram, and Micah. The kids always have so much fun playing with their cousins. And there were new toys this time, too!

Here is the gathering. We pushed all the furniture around to fit everyone.

We sang "Happy Birthday", and poor little Matthew couldn't figure out why everybody was gathering around staring at him and singing. He was a little concerned, but he was really mesmerized by the candle.

He wasn't too sure about the cake either (obviously I don't bake much).

But he decided he liked it.

After pizza and cake, it was present time! This ball fountain was from Grandma Nan and Grandpa Fred. It was a big hit!

Here's Joey just being silly.

We got Matt a rocking horse that sings and makes horsey noises. It's little enough for him to climb up on. The mouth moves, and he kept trying to kiss it.

He likes riding too! What a true cowboy...

Happy birthday, Matt! We love you!

Snakes and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails

I knew this day would come. I have three boys, and I've been dreading it ever since Ben told me about the time he and his brother filled the bathtub with snakes when they were kids. Today it was my turn. The tragedy struck in the backyard. I was inside changing the baby's poop, and I went outside to check on the kids. I rounded the corner, and there was Joey, carrying a dead rat by the tail. A long, black, slimy one. Our conversation went something like this:

Joey: "Look at this dead rat!"
Me: "That's not a dead rat."
Joey: "Yes it is."
(I got closer) Me: "Joey that's a rat! It's a rat! A rat! Drop it! Drop it! Drop it!"
(Joey dropped it): "It's dead."
Me: "I know it's dead! It's a rat! Where did you get a rat?!" (I grabbed his arms so he couldn't touch anything, you know, just in case of the plague or some other terrible rat disease and I marched him inside to scrub him.)
Joey: "It's Shoji's rat. It's just dead."

So we made it up to the bathroom, me crying "It's a rat, oh, you had a rat!" all the way. I scrubbed him, Grace, and me for about five minutes. I called Ben at work and stumbled on and on about the dead rat, and I asked him to come home (well, I think I said something like "I need you to come home now!"). I scrubbed the doors and doorknobs with Lysol while we were waiting for dad. I don't know why - I was about to throw up and it just made me feel better. Ben took care of the thing when he got home, and then told me that he thought his assistants could hear me screaming from the phone. He was certain I was going to tell him one of the kids was covered in blood or something. Well, it was almost that bad. Not quite, but almost.

I spent the rest of the morning explaining to Joey that he was still a good boy, and I love him always, and please do not ever pick up anything dead. I told him that boys like yucky things, but mommies do not. And it's not a good idea to pick up anything dead because it could have diseases, etc....... I think he got the picture.

I can't imagine where a rat came from, and I don't know if Shoji killed it or just found it dead somewhere. Ben said it wasn't stiff, so it hadn't been dead long. He thought it looked like it drowned. He thought maybe it got caught in a puddle or in a bucket or something when the sprinklers were on. I am just gagging every time I think of a rat in my yard! We're civilized people, for crying out loud! We do not live in London in the dark ages! There should not be rats anywhere near here! Gross!

Planting the Garden

I love blogging. Mandy, you've created a monster.

So this is how we started the day:

I know. Every time I turn around, this kid does something crazy. He really did have "owies" under there, too. The one on his chin has been bugging him for a week now (because he keeps picking the scab). The one under his nose is new. We were both reaching for the same thing and I accidentally tripped him. Boy, was he mad at me! He has not let me forget how it was my fault. He tells everybody and reminds me every day. We might have to work on a forgiveness lesson. I almost wish I hadn't taught him how to do bandaids by himself. It does save me a lot of time now, though. But as long as I keep a steady supply, he's happy.

Later in the day it was planting the garden time. We've been waiting for this forever! I'm the worst gardener in the world. I have a whole pack of dead flowers on my front porch. I'll be removing those today. Jerry came to get the kids this morning for Grandpa Day, and he said, "You should throw some water on those and see what happens." I think they're a lost cause, but I'll try. At least I can keep people alive, right? So we try a garden every year and this year I'm determined to reap some benefits. I'll work really hard to figure out what I'm doing.

What was I talking about? Oh yeah. So after Andrew got back from his golf lesson, we started working. Shoji, our horse-dog, decided since no one was watching Matt, she had better. So she sat herself right next to him and stayed with him until Haley came over to get him. She was there for a long time. I love that dog, even though I almost beat her this morning for getting into my freshly-planted garden! Every night she lays down with us in the family room while we watch tv. Then, as soon as Ben and I get up to go to bed, she goes into Grace's room and sleeps on the floor by Gracie's bed. It's so cute! She really loves these kids.

Andrew and I worked hard to do the planting. Didn't Ben do a great job of making this garden? It's about 3 times as big as our old one. We decided to move it because it wasn't getting enough sun, so he dug out and moved all this sod and put the border up, and filled and tilled it. What a hard worker. His muscles are letting him know all about it, though.

Here's Andrew planting pumpkins. I hope we actually get some this time!

Shoji let Matthew eat some dirt. I'll have to talk to her about that. He'll be fine. A little dirt never hurt anybody. Good fiber.

Well, it's planted, and we'll let you know how it's going. Wish us luck!

Sunny Days

We had some great weather this weekend, which was good because we had a mountain of yard work to do! We let the kids cool off in the pool for a little bit. It was getting to be the end of the day, so after they were done "swimming", I bathed Matt, Grace, and Joey in the pool. They were not too happy about that, but why fill up a bath tub when you have a perfectly good filled pool? Right?

Of course, Matthew did most of the splashing. Here is his silent open mouth face again. You'll see a lot of that.

On Monday, Ben had to mow the lawn and the kids wanted to run through the sprinklers. It was about 85 degrees, so they had a lot of fun.

I don't know if she was screaming or singing here. They both sort of look the same.

The boys decided to dry off in the driveway. They're so funny.

Here they are discussing something in the sky.
Ahh, lazy days are just about here!

It's Official

Just wanted you all to know that we are officially the parents of a teenager. Maybe you all could take a moment of silence for us today. Just pray that we make it through the next five years.

And speaking of our wonderful teenager, Haley had a chorus concert last Thursday. Here she is in the front row, glaring at dad because he's taking her picture. See if you can spot her!

The boys were busy playing with their cousins, so Ben and I just took Grace and Matthew. Matthew was pretty good. He enjoyed the clapping, because he can do it too. Although, he only clapped after everybody else was done. Then he decided to crawl around the gym at warp speed, so we stepped out into the hall. We met up with Bree and Chloe out there. Grace and Chloe had a great time playing in the lockers.

We went to the mall play area earlier that day. They have a great place called the Imaginarium. They are trying to build a Children's Museum in Billings, which is greatly needed. I'm sure it will be a few years, though. My kids will probably be too big for it then. But they had fun at the miniature one at the mall. Here's some pics.

Matt found a favorite spot - in the tree

Today we're saying goodbye to our cousins. Hope to see you soon!

More fun with the cousins

We had another great day with our Utah cousins. We just love having them here. We had dinner, then played with playdough. It was kind of a rainy day so it was nice to have fun inside.

We also decided to paint. The kids made some great art.

After that, we just played downstairs. The boys were busy with the wii, of course, and the girls had a lot of fun in Gracie's room. They were playing dollhouse. Their dolly's were very brave and decided to go up on the roof. It was very funny.

We had the whole gang together, so we decided to take a picture the next day at grandma's house. This was the last picture. If I have time later, I'll show you the pictures leading up to this one. They tell the whole story!

Later that night the rain finally stopped, and Brenlee and I took Andrew to his soccer game. Brenlee was busy sticking his straw in his ear. He was very helpful, too, and helped take Andrew his water and treats, and he took some pictures.

Mother's Day

This Mother's Day started out with our tradition of the kids bringing me breakfast in bed. I decided to spare you the picture of me in my pajamas sans makeup. Believe me - you do not want to see that. So here we are before church. Gracie really wanted to be a big girl and bring some scriptures. She was ready to go! We actually made it on time because there was no early morning meetings, and Ben was home to help with the kids. Yay!

I had to fill in for the Primary pianist in sacrament meeting. The boys were singing with the Primary for the mommies, so we had a little practice session before chuch, because that's when I remembered that I had to play. Oops. And please excuse the butt shot.

Then we had a nice dinner at the Kazmierski's. Here are the grandmas enjoying their time after dinner. The men of the family cook the meal and clean up. I wish every day was Mother's Day!

We had a little song after dinner, performed by Andrew and Lita. They sang together one verse and then Lita did a solo on the second verse. This is Ben's younger brother, Sam, Ben's mom Nan holding Grace, and Ben's dad Fred.

My sister and her family came that day, so we went over to Grandma Jane's next to visit. Grandma and Grandpa Kirschenmann were there, still basking in the glory of their anniversary! They're still so cute - 60 years and counting!

My uncle Paul and aunt Cindy brought Collin, their Grandson with them. Here are the boys playing some sort of video game. It's like a magnet. If I ever want my boys, I just turn on something electronic and they come running.

The next day Lindsey and I decided to take the kids to the park. It was so nice out, I think I got a sunburn! Here are the kids under the big trees. It's like a natural fort under there, so they played Star Wars, of course.

Here is Matt on the swings. I think he was in there for a half hour. He would swing all day if I let him. He just swings and laughs. So cute.

Joey and Emma get along so great. Here they are on an adventure.

And of course, here's Andrew up a tree. That boy would live in a tree if I let him. In fact, he said he could live in this one. I'm just glad no bones were broken today.

The park we went to was full of sand, and so was their hair when we left.

It was a fun day. We wish our cousins lived closer. They absolutely love to play. We'll enjoy it while they're here. Eric comes on Wednesday, so that's when the real fun begins!

60th Anniversary

Aren't they cute?! 60 years and still smiling!

Today was my Kirschenmann Grandparents' 60th Anniversary party. We met my mom, Jerry, and Kelsey at their house and traveled in a caravan down to Hardin. We went to my aunt Carol's house and met up with all the family. We were able to see family that we haven't seen in many, many years. It was so good to see all of them! We love it when my Uncle Paul and his wife Cindy come visit from ND. Cindy cracks me up, and she was so nice to give Joey a sucker when he was feeling left out because he couldn't have the cake. Speaking of Joey, he left quite an impression on my family who hadn't met him before. Joey is very, let's see - transparent - I guess you could say. You can immediately tell his emotions just by looking at his face. They all cracked up with his faces and his comments. Nobody ever forgets Joey! Aunt Linda and aunt Kathy really had a good time with him. Andrew had a great time playing with some cousins. Grace wanted to play catch all day, and Haley and I also played a lot of volleyball. My uncle Leo and aunt Carol have a gigantic yard, complete with a volleyball net. It was great fun! Here are some pics:

Haley grabbed the camera and got some great photos. Here's Grandpa, and behind him is my cousin Jimmy in the orange, my uncle Jim in the grey, my cousin Patrick in the white, and my uncle Paul.

I wanted a picture of just me and Grace, because we were accidentally wearing the same thing. And Kelsey and I matched too! But anyway, Matthew wanted in on the action, so here's all three of us.

I never thought I'd have a child who resembled me. One out of five isn't bad, huh?

Kelsey and Haley had Matthew practicing his new walking skills in the big back yard.

Matthew was very content to have daddy all to himself, for once.

Joey, Andrew and I practiced some baseball. They both made some great contact with the ball. We even played a little more when we got home. I'm so glad they love baseball too!

And here's my little Haley, a chip off the old block. We had a lot of fun volleying back and forth before the net was put up.

Grace really loves her new purple baseball mitt. She begged me over and over to play catch with her.

Before we left, uncle Leo wanted some family pictures. Mom took a couple with our camera. Grandpa Jerry was trying to get the kids to look at the camera, but they just thought he was funny. Hopefully uncle Leo and my cousin Gary got some better ones. This will have to do for now!

Kelsey caught a ride with us on the way home. Matthew kept egging her on. Then he threw a fit and fell asleep. The other kids were zombied out by the movie. It was a pretty quiet ride home.

I'm so glad we were able to share this special day with our family. It's not often we get to see them all. I'm hoping to be able to celebrate our 60th anniversary sometime. I hope we have all our family around us at that time. I can't even imagine!

Playdate

On Friday we had a fun playdate with our friends. It is actually Joey's girlfriend - well, one of them anyway. I should say it's his favorite girlfriend. He usually meets a new girl he wants to marry about once a week. But these two are hilarious. She and her family used to be in our ward before they moved. Joey and Kourtney were in the same sunbeam class, and before that they were in nursery together. That's where it all started. Since then, the entire Primary has gotten plenty of laughs watching them hold hands and snuggle in the front row. He'd put his arm around her, and she would lean her head on his shoulder. So cute! We really enjoy our playdates, and Kourtney's mom and I get to catch up. They have a gigantic yard, and the kids had a blast. Here's Gracie on the playground:

Matthew just crawled around enjoying himself. He didn't even eat any rocks. Then, to our astonishment, he took his first steps! It was so surprising because he gets so mad at us when we try to make him walk. And then he just took off! He's our slowest walker. The others all walked before 10 months. Andrew walked at 8 1/2 months, the little stinker. So I've really been enjoying Matt staying a baby a little longer. But I guess the party's over...

When it was lunch time, Joey felt like he needed to scoot his chair over to sit right next to Kourtney.

Here's the two cuties chasing each other in the back yard.

And here they are taking a boat ride together.

It was a fun day, despite the spurts of rain. Joey even got to stay a little longer and play after I left to give the little ones a nap. Can't wait to see them again!